Executive Order 10924: Establishment of the Peace Corps. (1961)

Citation: Executive Order 10924, Establishment and Administration of the Peace Corps in the Department of State, March 1, 1961; General Records of the United States Government; Record Group 11; National Archives.How to use citation info.(on Archives.gov)

On March 1, 1961, President Kennedy signed this executive order establishing the Peace Corps. On September 22, 1961, Congress approved the legislation that formally authorized the Peace Corps. Goals of the Peace Corps included: 1) helping the people of interested countries and areas meet their needs for trained workers; 2) helping promote a better understanding of Americans in countries where volunteers served; and 3) helping promote a better understanding of peoples of other nations on the part of Americans.

The founding of the Peace Corps is one of President John F. Kennedy's most
enduring legacies. Yet it got its start in a fortuitous and unexpected moment.
Kennedy, arriving late to speak to students at the University of Michigan on
October 14, 1960, found himself thronged by a crowd of 10,000 students at 2
o'clock in the morning. Speaking extemporaneously, the Presidential candidate
challenged American youth to devote a part of their lives to living and working
in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Would students back his effort to form a
Peace Corps? Their response was immediate: Within weeks, students organized
a petition drive and gathered 1,000 signatures in support of the idea. Several
hundred others pledged to serve. Enthusiastic letters poured into Democratic
headquarters. This response was crucial to Kennedy's decision to make the founding
of a Peace Corps a priority. Since then, more than 168,000 citizens of all ages
and backgrounds have worked in more than 130 countries throughout the world
as volunteers in such fields as health, teaching, agriculture, urban planning,
skilled trades, forestry, sanitation, and technology.

By 1960 two bills were introduced in Congress that were the direct forerunners
of the Peace Corps. Representative Henry S. Reuss of Wisconsin proposed that
the Government study the idea, and Senator Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota asked
for the establishment of a Peace Corps itself. These bills were not likely to
pass Congress at the time, but they caught the attention of then-Senator Kennedy
for several important reasons. In contrast to previous administrations, Kennedy
foresaw a "New Frontier" inspired by Roosevelt's New Deal. The New
Frontier envisioned programs to fight poverty, help cities, and expand governmental
benefits to a wide array of Americans. In foreign affairs, Kennedy was also
more of an activist than his predecessor. He viewed the Presidency as "the
vital center of action in our whole scheme of government." Concerned by
what was then perceived to be the global threat of communism, Kennedy looked
for creative as well as military solutions. He was eager to revitalize our program
of economic aid and to counter negative images of the "Ugly American"
and Yankee imperialism. He believed that sending idealistic Americans abroad
to work at the grass-roots level would spread American goodwill into the Third
World and help stem the growth of communism there.

Kennedy lost no time in actualizing his dream for a Peace Corps. Between his
election and inauguration, he ordered Sargent Shriver, his brother-in-law, to
do a feasibility study. Shriver remembered, "We received more letters from
people offering to work in or to volunteer for the Peace Corps, which did not
then exist, than for all other existing agencies." Within two months of
taking office, Kennedy issued an Executive order establishing the Peace Corps
within the State Department, using funds from mutual security appropriations.
Shriver, as head of the new agency, assured its success by his fervent idealism
and his willingness to improvise and take action. But to have permanency and
eventual autonomy, the Peace Corps would have to be approved and funded by Congress.
In September 1961, the 87th Congress passed Public Law 87-293 establishing a
Peace Corps. By this time, because of Kennedy’s Executive order and Shriver's
leadership, Peace Corps volunteers were already in the field.